


child's play

by arcanawildcard, clairelutra (exosolarmoon)



Series: proof of concept [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Thieves, Gen, Interrogation, makoto and akechi are there too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-13
Updated: 2019-02-13
Packaged: 2019-10-27 08:37:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17763455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arcanawildcard/pseuds/arcanawildcard, https://archiveofourown.org/users/exosolarmoon/pseuds/clairelutra
Summary: It started as a game.Futaba would send Akira a card, and he would go fetch her whatever was on the card, so matter how strange it was or how difficult it was to obtain. If he successfully brought it back, Futaba would tell him something about herself.It was a bonding activity, something to break the ice between himself and Sojiro's other ward—Akira's new little sister. She was a shut-in who'd only shut herself in all the more when he'd moved into the Sakura residence, and he hadn't wanted to be the reason she never saw the light of day again.Eventually he started haggling for other things—for her to join him and Sojiro for dinner, to go to Akihabara with him, to switch chores with him, to help out at Leblanc—and her requests scaled accordingly.Which found Akira bullshitting his way to the top of a rigged casino a solid three years before he was legally allowed to gamble (did it count as gambling if the results were set before you even started?) and retrieving a special chip to get Futaba to go to the beach with him, and it only spiraled out from there.





	child's play

**Author's Note:**

> pbbBBBBTH
> 
> okay so _despite_ not posting anything for about a month and a half, i actually _have_ been writing. i've been writing a l o t. 
> 
> the only problem is that none of it seems to be completeable. :D;; so!! new series. where i outline my million and one au ideas in short scenes/oneshots instead of attempting to write a 200k fic with each and every one of them.
> 
> enjoy!!

It started as a game.

Futaba would send Akira a card, and he would go fetch her whatever was on the card, so matter how strange it was or how difficult it was to obtain. If he successfully brought it back, Futaba would tell him something about herself.

It was a bonding activity, something to break the ice between himself and Sojiro's other ward—Akira's new little sister. She was a shut-in who'd only shut herself in all the more when he'd moved into the Sakura residence, and he hadn't wanted to be the reason she never saw the light of day again.

Eventually he started haggling for other things—for her to join him and Sojiro for dinner, to go to Akihabara with him, to switch chores with him, to help out at Leblanc—and her requests scaled accordingly.

Which found Akira bullshitting his way to the top of a rigged casino a solid three years before he was legally allowed to gamble (did it count as gambling if the results were set before you even started?) and retrieving a special chip to get Futaba to go to the beach with him, and it only spiraled out from there.

Somewhere along the line, it went from her telling him to buy her novelty Pocky to her telling _everyone else_ that he was going to steal priceless artwork right out from under world famous artist Madarame's nose. She sent out calling cards for him, and he didn't know what he was going to get until it was announced on the news.

Obviously he was due to get caught _someday_ , but he hadn't expected it to take _ten years._

And now...

Now he had no idea how to break it to his interrogator that this wasn't all just about his tragic backstory.

"I _understand_ how hard it is to lose your parents," she was sighing, a hand on his case file and the other pinching the bridge of her nose. "Believe me, _I really do,_ but... why did you let it get so far? I mean, you knew the consequences. You've been sending _calling cards,_ for goodness sake. You could have a good life—by all accounts, you _do_ have a good life. Why are you throwing it all away like this?"

She was so earnest that he couldn't bring himself to say it.

The sharp red eyes and unimpressed scowl of the police commissioner behind her said that _she_ knew _exactly_ why he let it get so far, and the pleasant smile of the detective who'd caught him said that he also knew, and Akira was going to get as many years of jail time as the man could manage for it.

"Won't answer me, huh?" The interrogator sounded resigned. "Let's get down to business, then. Who are you working with?"

He didn't answer that, either.

"I could get you off with a lighter sentence if only I had a name or two," she offered.

To her left, the detective's pleasant smile had gotten both pleasanter and... slightly more _bloodthirsty._

"Sorry," said Akira, "I work alone."

(Sure, he had a little help sometimes, but he was the only one on these heists.)

The interrogator sat back in her seat with a soft _keh,_ folding her arms. "No _way_ you could have pulled all this off alone. You'd need a hacker on Medjed's level, at least."

"You should ask them about it, then," he said mildly.

Her voice took on an accusatory edge. "And your _new_ family? Do they know?"

A stab of actual guilt lanced through Akira's chest at the thought of Sojiro finding out. The only one willing to take in an orphan with a criminal record on good faith, and here was Akira, sitting in an interrogation room for the second time in his life with a case file stacked to the roof.

She narrowed her eyes at him, then sighed. "Guess not, huh."

Akira remained silent.

"So you really won't tell."

"There's nothing to tell."

To her right, the police commissioner snorted. Then, jerking her chin at the security guards, she snapped off a, "Take him away."

A shuffle of footsteps—a count of _one, two, three, four..._

And the power went out.

"What?" went the detective while the police commissioner shouted, _"No!"_ and the interrogator muttered an empathic, _fuck._

For his part, Akira slipped his cuffs and danced through the racket, sending Futaba and her hacking skills a silent thank you as he ducked into the hall and started running.

Sadayo was in the area for work, which meant he could _probably_ hitch a ride back to Victoria's, and from there to central Shibuya. Iwai wouldn't like the short notice, but he'd probably let Akira crash in Untouchable's backroom until he could sort out new living accommodations. Returning to his apartment probably wasn't the best idea under the circumstances.

Someone would need to look after Sojiro; Tae owed him about twenty favors and liked Leblanc anyway, so he'd call her when he had a moment. Ichiko would have fun with this scoop, and releasing it to the media before the police had the time to collect themselves would stir up exactly the kind of chaos Akira wanted. After that... Haru would probably be willing to hire a 'Ren Amamiya' at one of her cafes for a while, and he could lie low until Futaba worked her magic and wiped him out of the police records.

He hadn't been lying. He _did_ work alone. He just... knew a guy.

**Author's Note:**

> on a completely different note: i just found the mean girls broadway soundtrack and can i just say that _i'm in love???_
> 
>  _It's a Revenge Party_  
>  _With your two best friends_  
>  _It's like a party with **revenge** is what it's like_ ♫♪♫♪♫


End file.
